298 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



June 



tbe apiary thi3 season; at least, there is nothing 

 that we shall have to "send off" after, and we are 

 all ready for business, just as sooq as business is 

 ready for us. Perhaps this Is one reason why we 

 are '"taking comfort." Well, here I am taking up 

 valuable epace in Gleanings, without, I tear, im- 

 parting much information; so, after saying that 

 that little piece of phnography in the Juvenile is 

 very neat, I will close. W. Z. Hutchinson. 



Kogcrsvillc, Genesee Co., Mich., May li), 1SS3. 



P. S. — Phew! Here is May 31st, and the snow is 

 flying, and the mercury is down to 32°. 1 was out 

 among the bees this morning at 4:30, bvit the combs 

 seemed to be so well covered with bees that I don't 

 f/ii»* that much if any brood will be chilled; but I 

 just do wonder when the warm weather is coming 

 to stay. W. Z. H. 



J3ut there is a very gooil moral to your pa- 

 per this month, friend II., and tliat is, the 

 comfort of having every thing ready for 

 business as soon as business is ready for 

 you, as you expressit. Atleast. you think you 

 iiave every thing ready ; but wiih such aboom 

 with your 25 colonies of bees as our friends 

 sometimes have, yoit may lind yourself sud- 

 denly short, after all. Another good point 

 you make is the wisdom of being contented 

 with your surroundings. I don't mean con- 

 tented in any sense that would lead you to 

 lead a lazy life, but accepting the circum- 

 stances and your surroundings. I suppose 

 this same spirit, if followed a little further, 

 would make us contented with 32 degrees, 

 and frost and snow, even after the middle of 

 May. Not very contented, perhaps, but 

 master *of the state of affairs, and ready to 

 make a good season's work notwithstanding. 

 Eh? 



P. S. — Now, friend II., I think I want to 

 add a postscript, as you did. I am glad to 

 hear you come right out and say, "From GO 

 to 16." When a man is beaten, and beaten 

 unexpectedly, I do like to hear him come 

 out squarely, and own up. You see, it helps 

 our ABC class to know what they may ex- 

 pect, and to remember that bee culture is 

 not roses without the attendaut thorns. 



RUNAWAY SWARMS, AND OTHER ITIAT- 

 TERS. 



HONEY FROM WILLOAVS. 



^p&UK bees have had two days at willow bloom. 

 IIJjj) We have lots of willow hedge here. The sixth 

 ^'^ and seventh of May were nearly equal to two 

 days in basswood, judging from the flight of the 

 bees, as they flew from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. so heavily la- 

 den, they would sometimes fall in front of the hive, 

 and rest before crawling in. 



DISTANCE BEES FLY. 



But my bees are the far fliers. I have been satis- 

 fled for years that bees will fly 8 miles when honey is 

 scarce nearer. As further evidence, B. F. Little, of 

 Brush Creek, is the only bee-keeper near us having 

 the Italians. Now, his apiary is poorly shaded, and 

 he lost heavily by runaways. These absconding 

 Italians have been found in trees, etc., by bee-hunt- 

 ers, over ten miles from Brush Creek. I have made 

 some inquiry of several bee-hunters. Four swarms 

 of Italian bees have be en found in the timber near 

 Fayette, ten miles from Brush Creek, all new 



swarms; no bees winter here in hollow trees, only, 

 during light winters. 



The past winter was very severe on bees. Some 

 bee-keepers have lost all; others, half. Three of 

 the largest bee-keepers in our county came out with 

 but a light loss— not over ten per cent. We have an 

 old box-hive bee-keeper in Fayette who has been 

 successfully keeping bees, and made money at it 

 too; he likes to read Gleanings, but says he knows 

 all there is worth knowing. I think he could tell us 

 bee-koepers a great many things, if he could be in- 

 duced to write. He says he never lost a new swarm 

 by absconding, and I think he said one never came 

 out of the hive he'put them in. He has had at one 

 time as high as 300 swarms. 



IMPORTANCE OP SHADING NEW SWARMS. 



His strongest point regarding absconding swarms 

 is good, perfect shade, and plenty of air. He raises 

 all new swarms nearly one inch ofC the bottom-board. 

 The sun does not shine on his n^w swarms. He set 

 bis shade trees here and there nearly 20 years ago, 

 and they are quite large. No small shrubbery is 

 near the bees. Trees are well trimmed. It is cool 

 and airy at all times. 



I used to lose from two to ten per year that would 

 abscond to the timber; but by giving more air and 

 better shade, not one swarm has left a hive in three 

 years; and last year we had 38 first swarms, and 

 nearly twice that number of after-swarms. 



Fred Timmerman. 



Fayette, Fayette Co., Iowa, May, 1883. 



I am very glad to get your report of honey 

 from the willow, friend T. I have many 

 times wondered why our willow hedges 

 could not be utilized in a way to make them 

 a valuable adjunct to our honey resources. 

 We have willow hedges here, but they don't 

 seem to be the honey-bearing kind. In le- 

 gard to the distance bees tiy, I think a dis- 

 tinction should be made between bees going 

 in search of stores, and the flight of anew 

 swarm, as a swarm of bees with their queen 

 would probably go much further than bees 

 would ordinarily go in quest of stores. I 

 can hardly agree with you, that bees never 

 winter in the timber in any locality. We 

 have had so many reports of occasional col- 

 onies wintering with very poor protection 

 against the weather, that I should be in- 

 clined to think that they sometimes, at least, 

 wintered in trees, even during the severest 

 weather. I am also inclined to think that a 

 colony of Italians will locate in a tree, and 

 send out swarms very often the first season. 

 Bear in mind, we have a good many reports 

 now of first swarms sending out' a good 

 many swarms during the first season, and in 

 this way Italian blood would travel a good 

 way, even in one season. Your remarks on 

 shade are good. Many swarms leave their 

 hives, without any question, simply because 

 they are too warm. In putting up bees in 

 our wire-cloth cages, we have ample evi- 

 dence of the importance of shade and plenty 

 of air. A few days ago our apiarist put "a 

 pound and a half of bees in a cage intended 

 for one pound. 7\s the day was cool, he 

 thought there would be no trouble ; but the 

 mass of bees, filled with honey, soon raised 

 the temperature to such a pitch that they 

 would all have died, perhaps, in ten minutes, 

 if left under the full rays of the sun. We 



